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☆ John Deere backs away from diversity and inclusion efforts after a conservative backlash
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-18 | by ( Associated Press | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

NEW YORK AP —John Deere says it will no longer sponsor “social or cultural awareness” events, becoming the latest major US company to distance itself from diversity and inclusion measures after being targeted by conservative backlash. The move from the company known on Wall Street as Deere & Co. arrives just weeks after rural retailer Tractor Supply ended an array of its corporate diversity and climate efforts. Both announcements came after backlash piled up online from conservative activists opposed to diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, sponsorship of LGBTQ+ Pride events and climate advocacy. “If it’s so polarizing that people just abandon it, then we all lost.”Legal attacks against companies’ diversity, equity and inclusion efforts have also drawn more attention following the Supreme Court’s 2023 ruling to end affirmative action in college admissions. That doesn’t mean companies will stop their DEI efforts entirely, she added, but they may have to change language or find new workarounds.

Persons: John Deere, Robby Starbuck, Starbuck, John Deere’s, it’s, ”, Eric Bloem, John Boyd , Jr, John C, Deere, Bud Light, aren’t, SHRM, Johnny C, Taylor, Jr, Jen Stark, Donald Trump, Stark Organizations: Deere, Co, Tractor Supply, Conservative, Human Rights, Associated Press, Supply, Human, ”, Black Farmers Association, Deere &, Labor Department, Target, Society for Human Resource Management, LinkedIn, AP, Center for Business, Social, Heritage, Republican Locations: The Moline , Illinois, Brentwood , Tennessee, BSR, U.S

☆ RV sales are picking up. That’s a good sign for the economy
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-16 | by ( Alicia Wallace | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

When consumer sentiment falters or the economy starts to teeter, RV sales follow suit, said Michael Hicks, an economics professor at Ball State University and director of Indiana University’s Center for Business and Economic Research. “People don’t make these large, luxury purchases unless they’re actually feeling better about the economy,” said Hicks, who follows the RV industry closely. “It’s so sensitive to interest rate changes, which often precede a downturn.”A Winnebago travel trailer at Motor Sportsland RV dealership in Salt Lake City on April 6, 2020. Nika Shneyder and her father and business partner, Alex Shneyder, standing by a Chill RV in Malibu RV Park, California, in 2019. They moved down to a historically strong, but noticeably smaller, 493,000 the next year, according to data from the RV Industry Association.

Persons: That’s, Nika Shneyder, “ We’re, ” Shneyder, “, Michael Hicks, ”, Hicks, George Frey, bode, ” Michael J, Happe, hasn’t, We’ve, we’ve, Covid, Alex Shneyder, Nika, they’d, Monika Geraci, David Titus, Ty Wright, there’s, Ball State’s Hicks, ’ Titus, they’re, we’ll, Titus, ” Titus Organizations: CNN, Ball State University, Indiana University’s Center for Business, Economic Research, Bloomberg, Getty, Winnebago Industries, RV Industry, Dealers, RVs, Consumers, HL Enterprise, Manufacturing, of Labor Statistics Locations: Los Angeles, teeter, Salt Lake City, YOLO, Malibu, , California, Elkhart , Indiana, The Northern Indiana, South Bend, Elkhart, “, Elkhart .

☆ Harvard fellow: CFPB's 'buy now, pay later' regulation isn't enough — nothing 'substantively changes'
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-03 | by ( Jessica Dickler | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Last month, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau declared that buy now, pay later customers should have the same federal protections as users of credit cards. However, Marshall Lux, a fellow at the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government at the Harvard Kennedy School who studies BNPL, says the government's latest guidance is already a few steps behind. In fact, major buy now, pay later providers already provide such safeguards for users. "We've got an industry that's moving at light speed and a regulatory process that takes time," Lux said. More from Personal Finance:25% of consumers recently used a buy now, pay later loanCould buy now, pay later loans affect your credit score?

Persons: Marshall Lux, BNPL, —, PayPal —, We've, Lux, Penny Lee Organizations: Consumer Financial, Bureau, Rahmani Center for Business, Government, Harvard Kennedy School, PayPal, Finance, Financial Technology Association, Zip

☆ These 28 regional and community banks exceed regulators' threshold for high commercial real estate concentration risk: here's what's really at stake.
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-09 | by ( Laila Maidan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

But where banks' exposure to commercial real estate is concerned, locating that fire may be difficult. Rising interest rates quickly increased the cost of borrowing for investors in commercial real estate, including offices and multifamily homes. It doesn't reveal details such as borrowers' track records, said Mark Hillis, a former chief risk officer for commercial real estate at JPMorgan. There's also varying concentration risk: the largest banks with commercial real estate exposure are more diversified, meaning that any losses won't be as devastating, Baker said. "We think very few banks will run into issues just from their commercial real estate exposure," Reidy said.

Persons: Michael Barr, Jerome Powell, Todd Baker, Mark Hillis, Clifford Rossi, Robert H, Rossi, Baker, There's, Hillis, multifamily, haven't, You'll, Banks, you'll, Rebel Cole, NYCB, Matt Reidy, Reidy, Cole Organizations: Federal Reserve, Business, York Community Bank, SEC, Richman Center for Business, Law, Columbia University, JPMorgan, Smith, Smith School of Business, University of Maryland, Mortgage Banker's Association, Bank, Signature Bank, First, Countrywide Bank, Washington Mutual, Citigroup, multifamily, Florida Atlantic University, Federal, Regulators, TCRE, Equity RCRE, Community Bank, Provident Bank NJ, Merchants Bank of Indiana, Apple Bank for Savings, Oceanfirst Bank, Independent Bank, Lakeland Bank NJ, Ozk, Washington Federal Bank WA, Axos Bank, Sandy Spring Bank, Columbia Bank NJ, Farmers, Merchants Bank of CA, Popular Bank, Pacific Premier Bank, United Bank, Trust, Rockland Trust, Umpqua Bank, ServisFirst Bank, Bell Bank, Stellar Bank, National Bank of, National Bank of Florida FL, New York Community Bank Locations: multifamily, Basel, CRE, California, Rockland, National Bank of Florida

☆ Strong economic growth but high unemployment: A look at Nevada’s economy
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-08 | by ( Alicia Wallace | Tami Luhby | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +13 min

In Las Vegas, the cacophony of voices, music, ringing slot machines and car horns that typically pulsed through the Las Vegas Strip was replaced by silence, the chirps of birds and the wails of sirens. In tourism-dependent Nevada, the unemployment rate rocketed even higher, topping out at 30.6% that month. “This is an unemployment rate that’s not driven by job losers, this is an unemployment rate driven by job seekers,” he said. Homes under construction in the Summerlin community, on July 31, 2023, in Las Vegas, Nevada. As of December 2023, the Reno metro area’s unemployment rate was just 0.2 percentage points above the nation’s 3.7% rate.

Persons: John Simpson, Steve, Sisolak, ” Simpson, It’s, ”, they’re, I’ve, Stephen M, Miller, Mario Tama, Bob Potts, there’s, There’s, Nevadans, Annie E, Casey Foundation’s, Jamelle Nance, Marty Elquist, ” Elquist, “, Andrew Woods, Nicholas Irwin, Start’s Simpson, Irwin, Ethan Miller, Maurice Page, Page, Tesla, ” Potts, Carolyn Cole, Potts, You’ve, you’ve Organizations: CNN, Las, Republican Party, of Labor Statistics, University of Nevada, Lee Business School’s Center for Business, Economic Research, New York, Nevada Governor’s, Economic, Las Vegas, New, Workforce, Children’s, Alliance of Nevada, Education, Development, Silver State, Center for Business, UNLV, Reno, ”, Homes, Nevada Housing Coalition, Harvard University’s, for Housing Studies, Silver, Means, Reno Industrial Park, Apple, Panasonic, Google, Reno Industrial, Los Angeles Times, NCAA, NFL, NFL Pro Bowl Locations: Nevada, Las Vegas, Reno, ” Nevada, State, New York, New, Las, New Mexico, Vegas, “ Nevada, Silver, UNLV . Nevada, California, Sparks, Las Vegas , Nevada, Florida, Hawaii, Clark County, Sparks , Nevada, New Orleans, Denver, Southern Nevada, Northern Nevada, Los Angeles

☆ From Sin City to Sports Central: How Las Vegas is betting big on a lucrative industry
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-19 | by ( Alicia Wallace | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

But for many decades, the NFL and other leagues opposed having sport franchises in Las Vegas, most likely due to the city’s deeply rooted gambling industry. “Vegas fans tend to be sports fans, too, and sports have helped us expand the customer base that are willing to consider Las Vegas,” Hill said. And during the past two years, Las Vegas and other tourist-centric cities have benefitted from consumers’ post-pandemic splurges on experiences and travel versus goods. The Las Vegas Strip can be seen outside the lanai doors at Allegiant Stadium during a game on October 15, 2023, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Ethan Miller/Getty Images/FILEAs the pandemic wore on, construction continued on expanding the Las Vegas Convention Center as well as the Raiders’ Allegiant Stadium, among other projects.

Persons: ”, Andrew Woods, ” Woods, Woods, Roger Goodell —, ” Goodell, John Fisher, Steve Hill, ” Hill, Ethan Miller Organizations: Minneapolis CNN, Athletics, NCAA, NFL Pro Bowls, NBA, MLS, Center for Business, Economic Research, University of Nevada, Sunday’s, Las Vegas, Prix, UNLV’s Lee Business School, NFL, National Hockey League, Oakland Raiders, Major League Baseball, Oakland Athletics, Las Vegas Convention, Visitors Authority, UNLV, “ Entertainment Capital, Sports, Entertainment Capital, Las, Nevada Gaming Control, Getty, Las Vegas Convention Center, Raiders Locations: Minneapolis, Las Vegas, Vegas, Bellagio, Clark County , Nevada, Covid, United States, Las Vegas , Nevada

☆ Elon Musk laid him off. Now he’s aiming to build a social network that’s better than X
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-07 | by ( Clare Duffy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +17 min

They wanted it to be everything most social media struggles to be: positive, safe and inclusive. And as the user base of the platform now known as X splinters, so does Black Twitter, the community of Black users that was a big part of Twitter’s growth and culture. Legacy social media platforms have repeatedly failed to anticipate how their products might be manipulated or misused until something goes wrong. Alphonzo Terrell, co-founder of the social media app Spill, demonstrates how the platform works during an interview with CNN. CNNEven with AI content moderation models, other social media companies often fail to catch harmful content that makes it onto their platforms.

Persons: Alphonzo Terrell, he’d, Terrell – who’d, –, Elon Musk, Terrell, DeVaris Brown, “, ‘, ’ ” Terrell, who’s, Brown, Musk, ”, Maya Umemoto Gorman, …, ” Terrell, Brown —, Kenya Parham, weren’t, Elon, Maya Iman ‘, they’ve, “ That’s, Alphonzo Terrell “, Paul Barrett, they’d, it’s, — don’t, Jalaiah Harmon, Taylor Lorenz, Latoya Lee, ” Lee Organizations: New, New York CNN, Twitter, Elon, CNN, Spill, Washington Post, HBO, Showtime, YouTube, Intel, Cisco, Microsoft, NYU Stern Center for Business, Human, Apple, Kapor Center, Social, Mac Venture, Netflix, Disney, Amazon Prime, VH1, Pew Research Center, New York Times, California State University Fullerton Locations: New York, Los Angeles, Kenya, Spill, Georgia

Now, however, some firms and experts are walking back those predictions, calling into question the validity of a once-trusted recession indicator known as the yield curve inversion. Nobody rational would argue that the yield curve could have predicted a global pandemic and the short recession that followed it. NABE's most recent survey shows economists are divided on what a yield curve inversion means for the U.S. economy. In normal circumstances, yield curve inversions have been a pretty good indicator of recessions, according to Jebaraj. While the yield curve inverted in 2019, that was not necessarily a predictor of the 2020 recession.

Persons: Mervin, NABE, Goldman Sachs, NABE's Jebaraj, Sam, Jebaraj, — Organizations: Westend61, Getty, National Association for Business Economics, Reserve, Wall, Bank of America, JPMorgan, Center for Business, Economic Research, Walton College of Business, University of Arkansas, Treasury, National Association for Business Locations: U.S

☆ An Iraqi historian was slain after being labeled a spy on Facebook. Exclusive emails show catastrophic delays in removing threatening posts.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( Tekendra Parmar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

Hisham al-Hashimi reached out to his friend Aws al-Saadi, a Meta Trusted Partner, to ask him to take down posts endangering his life. "One of the reasons for his killing was Meta," al-Saadi told Insider. "Mainly because they assumed that the slow response times had to do with a high volume of cases." Aws al Saadi, a Meta trusted partner, outside the Erbil Citadel in Iraq. Internews hopes this might help create a trusted-partner channel with improved communication, more transparency, and faster response times.

Persons: Hisham al, Hashimi, Saadi, Saadi Al, Meta, al, Saadi isn't, Meta's, Internews, Paul Barrett, University's, Barrett, Rafiq Copeland, Internews Rafiq Copeland, Copeland, Thaier, Sudani Internews, Copland, Meareg Amare, Reem Makhoul Organizations: ISIS, Facebook, Meta, Center for Business, Human Rights, NYU Stern School of Business Meta, Partners, University's Stern School of Business, Global, Internews, Ukrainian, Ethiopian, Erbil Citadel Locations: Baghdad, Iraq, al, Myanmar, Ethiopia, New, Ukraine, Tigray, Hashimi, Iraqi, Erbil, Netherlands

LONDON, April 4 (Reuters) - The problems around artisanal cobalt mining in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) will take "a coalition to solve", according to Microsoft (MSFT.O). Yet the West still needs Congo's cobalt and everyone agrees that formalisation is the solution to the high human and economic costs of artisanal mining. ETHICAL DILEMMAThe ethical dilemma facing Western cobalt users, which is just about everyone with a mobile phone, is headline news again after the publication of "Cobalt Red" by Siddarth Kara. Mutoshi's artisanal miners have lost their collective pricing power and their cobalt is once again flowing down opaque channels into the industrial supply chain, the report claims. Most of the country's estimated 150,000-200,000 cobalt miners have never even had the chance of formalisation.

☆ Bank runs have the crypto industry on high alert. 3 experts explain why the latest batch is especially worrisome — and what comes next.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( Laila Maidan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Only a decade ago, bank runs happened at a much slower pace. The era of digital bank runsOne thing the past few weeks has made clear is that bank runs now unfold differently, especially for smaller banks that service specialized sectors. "Bank runs are evolving into a different and much more dangerous beast because they happen faster," Baker said. By comparison, on March 9, SVB lost $42 billion in a day — and it was a smaller bank, Baker added. Long said she warned regulators again after FTX collapsed that banks servicing the crypto sector face the danger of bank runs.

☆ Meta is cracking down on revenge porn targeting children on Instagram and Facebook by funding a new tool to remove explicit images
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Sawdah Bhaimiya | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Meta is cracking down on revenge porn targeting children under the age of 18 on its platforms. It funded a new tool removing explicit images online, released by a child protection organization. Over 20 million images of child sexual abuse material were found on Facebook and Instagram in 2020. Users can select images and videos on their devices that they don't want to be posted online or that have already been posted online. It also detected over 20 million images of child sex abuse on Instagram and Facebook in 2020.

☆ Microsoft calls for 'coalition' to improve Congo's informal cobalt mines
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Congo accounts for three-quarters of the world's mined cobalt supply. "In practice it is virtually impossible for them to completely exclude artisanal cobalt, especially when it is sent to smelters and refiners in DRC and China." Microsoft declined to reply to Reuters' questions about the visit or about its strategy on artisanal cobalt. The issues around artisanal mining are an existential threat to the cobalt industry, according to Marina Demidova, head of communications at the Cobalt Institute. Entreprise Generale du Cobalt, a unit of state mining company Gecamines, was granted a monopoly on artisanal cobalt by government decree.

☆ Meta, Twitter, Microsoft and others urge Supreme Court not to allow lawsuits against tech algorithms
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

The diverse group weighing in at the Court ranged from major tech companies such as Meta, Twitter and Microsoft to some of Big Tech’s most vocal critics, including Yelp and the Electronic Frontier Foundation. Section 230 has been used to shield all websites, not just social media platforms, from lawsuits over third-party content. “If Yelp could not analyze and recommend reviews without facing liability, those costs of submitting fraudulent reviews would disappear,” Yelp wrote. “The feed uses algorithms to recommend software to users based on projects they have worked on or showed interest in previously,” Microsoft wrote. “Without a liability shield for recommendations, platforms will remove large categories of third-party content, remove all third-party content, or abandon their efforts to make the vast amount of user content on their platforms accessible.

The debate comes less than two months after Twitter restored Trump’s account, but Meta’s intention to reevaluate the decision predates Twitter’s reversal. “I can’t think of what that rigorous standard would be that would make this policy be applied fairly, not just to former President Trump, but to any politician.”Is Trump bound to Truth Social? A phone screen displays the Truth Social app in Washington, DC, on February 21, 2022. Trump now has his own rival social media platform, Truth Social, which he launched in February. Despite his desire for a bigger megaphone and aides encouraging him to rejoin Twitter, Trump has said he is committed to Truth Social.

☆ Gen Zers are spending big this holiday season — and it could come back to bite them
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Avery Hartmans | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Gen Z shoppers came out in full force during Black Friday and Cyber Monday this year. BNPL seems like an easy way to pay for purchases, but it's causing some young consumers to rack up debt. Despite predictions of a lackluster holiday shopping season this year, shoppers came out in full force during Black Friday and Cyber Monday. "One standout this Black Friday was the high turnout of Gen Z in stores," Kristen Classi-Zummo, apparel industry analyst with market research firm NPD, told CNN. Frequent BNPL use has led some young shoppers to rack up thousands of dollars in debt and tank their credit scores.

☆ More Americans tapping buy now, pay later for holiday gifts shows 'how stressed the economy is,' Harvard researcher says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Jessica Dickler | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Americans are increasingly finding alternative ways to satisfy their holiday wish lists as they continue to grapple with high prices and inflation. On Black Friday through Cyber Monday, buy now, pay later payments through companies such as Klarna, Zip, Zilch, Affirm and Afterpay jumped 85% compared with the week before, according to the most recent data from Adobe. Buy now, pay later revenue rose 88% for the same period. Lux called this year's spike in installment buying "horrible, and a real statement on how stressed the economy is, especially for the average American." Heading into November, 60% of Americans reported living paycheck to paycheck.

Nov 14 (Reuters) - Squire Patton Boggs on Monday said it will open an office in Dublin next year, becoming the latest international law firm to expand into Ireland. Agnew was a founding partner of Pinsent Masons' Dublin office. A Squire Patton Boggs spokesperson said the firm is currently looking at space in Dublin's central business district. Agnew said in an email that the exact timing of his departure from Pinsent Masons "has still to be agreed." Squire Patton Boggs was created in 2014 by the merger of Washington, D.C.-founded Patton Boggs and Cleveland-founded Squire Sanders.

☆ Twitter could be a new wild card for the midterms
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

CNN Business —For years, Twitter has been a leader in countering misinformation and protecting elections. But concerns are growing that tumult inside Twitter in the first week after it was acquired by Elon Musk could weaken its safeguards for elections, just before the midterms are set to take place. Musk promised not to alter any of Twitter’s content policies until after the midterms. He tweeted: “Going forward, any Twitter handles engaging in impersonation without clearly specifying ‘parody’ will be permanently suspended,” and without warning. The shakeup at Twitter has turned the company itself into an election wildcard.

☆ Far-right figures gained thousands of new Twitter followers in the 24 hours before Elon Musk's takeover, research company finds
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-30 | by ( Sam Tabahriti | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Far-right figures gained thousands of new Twitter followers in the 24 hours before Musk took over. Among these new followers, thousands were new to the platform, researchers told The New York Times. Colorado Rep. Lauren Boebert gained almost 18,700 new followers in the 24 hours leading up to Musk's takeover, with nearly half from new accounts. Memetica CEO Ben Decker told Insider the findings were alarming because those who gained followers "are really well-known purveyors of disinformation, harassment, and hate." "The more followers and wider reach these accounts have, the more distribution these ideas have," Decker told The New York Times.

☆ Is Twitter ready for the midterms?
▼ + stars: | 2022-08-26 | by ( Clare Duffy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +16 min

The disclosure alleges that Twitter is rife with security and privacy vulnerabilities that put users, investors and even US national security at risk, and that Twitter executives have misled its board and regulators about its shortcomings. Members of the US House Committee on Homeland Security on Thursday sent Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal a letter demanding that he address Zatko’s allegations and explain Twitter’s readiness for the 2022 midterms. In 2020, hackers tricked Twitter employees into handing over internal access that allowed them to take over the accounts of prominent figures such as former President Barack Obama and then-Presidential candidate Joe Biden. “Twitter employees were repeatedly found to be intentionally installing spyware on their work computers at the request of external organizations,” the disclosure states. Twitter’s employees use devices overseen by other IT and security teams with the power to prevent a device from connecting to sensitive internal systems if it is running outdated software, Twitter added.

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